∞ Windows 8 math

Written by

Andrew Richardson:

Well, Windows on a diet running alone in 2 GB sounds reasonable. Windows plus one non-bloatware application running in 2 GB, maybe. Windows multitasking a half-dozen apps, some of them legacy Windows applications like Outlook, Excel or Photoshop, and a browser with ten open tabs? Good luck with that. It won’t matter that the user can switch between the Metro UI and mobile apps, and something resembling Windows 7 and desktop apps, because it all has to fit in a RAM store that remains cost-competitive with a tablet.


  • http://twitter.com/TyRiKe Steven Ung

    agreed!

  • Anonymous

    annnnnnnnd that’s a surprise, how?

  • http://profiles.yahoo.com/u/CO36G2RP7H3Q43ZWVK4IQAQLAM Ronald

    That is a good point, although 4GB modules for a Mac Mini from OWC are only $35 (maybe volume purchase cost is $20 or so?). I don’t know if the memory used in tablets is as cheap.

    I’ve always felt that Apple under-delivers RAM on their devices only partly to save money, but partly to try and encourage apps to be written more efficiently.One of my only complaints with my original iPad (which I love) is that 256MB or RAM is WAY too small. There are many Apps that if I want to run them I need to reboot my iPad first to clean out the memory … if I don’t, the App won’t even run. I also find it extremely frustrating that Safari has trouble keeping two pages in memory at the same time. If I go from one web page to another and then back again, Safari almost always is forced to reload the web page which is slow and usually loses my place on the page.

  • http://twitter.com/pberry Patrick Berry

    Hey, it’s all about no compromises…right?  Right?

  • $360AShareAgainPissesMeOff>:-{

    A Windows 8 tablet is going to require more of everything to decently run that Windows 8 bloatware.  More processing power, more RAM memory, more storage memory, more cooling, more battery size.  Those requirements are the main reason I don’t understand why Microsoft is so adamant about running a desktop OS on a light tablet just so they can prove to the world that it can be done and that they’ll have the most powerful OS on a tablet.  Does Microsoft really think that consumers give a damn about having the most powerful OS at their fingertips?  Not if it’s going to cost them more.  I honestly don’t see how Microsoft can build a low-cost high-quality tablet if the hardware requirements are going to be high.

    If they can solve those problems then I guess Microsoft and Windows deserve to be on top.

  • Anonymous

    I can just hear the fans screaming….  Run towards the screaming of the fans Clarice ….

  • Anonymous

    Well – take an 11″ MacBook Air, remove the keyboard and replace it with a touchscreen. Remove the old Air screen completely. 

    You now have a machine that can run almost any normal set of OS X programs with an Intel Core i7 with 4Gb RAM, with up to 128Gb of SSD memory, and a battery life of around 5 hours. Removing the lid and hinge probably gets you below 2lbs in weight. It does still need fans, though…

    Remind you of anything? Remember, it also has a Thunderbolt port, so you can connect it up to a far more powerful setup.